Target: a research for each age!

As for the success of a Business, even for the success of a Market Research it is necessary to know and identify the target audience.

Knowing who he is, how old he is, where he lives, what are his habits and his behaviours of use and consumption, are important prerequisites for the definition of the survey methodology, for a correct and effective finding and for the achievement of the research objectives .

The way of thinking, of communicating, of acting, the tastes are influenced by the historical moment in which we belong. In fact, a first possible target segmentation can be based on age, which together with sex and income represent the most immediate parameters for a first classification of individuals.

Based on age, we distinguish between Baby Boomers (born between 1945 and 1960), Generation X (born between 1961 and 1980), Millennials or Generation Y (born between 1981 and 1995) and Generation Z (born after 1995). The personal data – precisely – brings with it a series of individual characteristics determined by the period in which they were born, grew up and lived.

Baby Boomers are the generation of cultural revolutions, civil rights struggles, feminism and rock. They have experienced economic growth, have an average high income but also a great propensity to save. Today 75% of them use Facebook, but mostly in a silent way. They are those who prefer direct face-to-face communication or telephone calls.

Generation X is the largest segment of the current population. It is an “undefined” generation, straddling two very different periods: the one of the “American dream”, more secure and stable; the other more precarious but also more open in ways of thinking and more technological. They are the ones who have the first videogames, the first computers and the first mobile phones. The passage from the traditional to the thimble has lived on their skin, of which they mainly recognize practicality and utility. They are the ones who gave life to Google and Yahoo! and they actively use all the major social networks.

Millennials are the generation with more affinity and confidence with digital technologies and new media. They are “the always connected”, they are the generation of “influencers” that release their choice from standard or generalized indications. They live in a liquid society, they believe in the “sharing economy” and despite (or perhaps because of that!) the precariousness they face are the founders of the first start-ups. Less focused on Facebook than previous generations, they use all the other social networks where they love to share contents.

The Z is the first digital native generation, they are the mobile-first of the story that is those who mainly use the smart phone as a tool to access the internet. They are the generation of e-commerce, instant, short and “disappear” communications. And more than sharing them, they create content on social media and in particular on Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube but also Musical.ly.

It is evident that in this brief synthesis of the different generations, it has become generalized, other important parameters have been neglected, and boundaries have been left out, leaving out the possible transversality of the registry segmentation of some factors. But nevertheless it is interesting to note that these first and few indications can already be useful for the purpose of evaluating the most appropriate methodological approach for conducting market researches. They speak of differences in the availability of different targets, but also how to achieve them and how to involve them in an appropriate and fruitful way for the investigation.

Having come to the conclusion, it is important to underline that in choosing a type of research, one cannot ignore the objectives that are set, indeed they are the ones that – first of all – define the methodology of investigation (qualitative, quantitative, or “mysterious” “). The correct knowledge and identification of the target allows to appropriately modulate the survey, optimizing time and costs and ensuring the success and quality of the results.

Contact us at hello@ourkik.com. We will be happy to understand with you which methodology is best suited to your survey target.